12 Off-the-Wall Job Interview Questions and What They Mean

Interviews are perhaps the most nerve-wracking part of a job hunt. Will they ask you about your strengths and weaknesses, or will they ask you how many golf balls would fit in a school bus? And if golf balls do come up (and you're not looking for a job at Golf Digest or Titleist), what is the interviewer actually looking to find out about you?

Tech companies, in particular, are known for asking bizarre-sounding questions while interviewing future employees, but unusual interview topics aren't only the domain of Silicon Valley giants. Living Business, a blog for the insurance company Colonial Life, put together a short list of odd questions that might come up in a job interview, explaining what they really mean so that you can answer them in a way that makes you look like the stellar employee you are.

To prepare for your next job interview, take a look at the questions below, which have all been asked by real companies. Unfortunately, research shows that free-form interviews aren’t actually very useful for finding the right candidate for a position, but in a world where interviews are still a necessary step to securing a position at most companies, you have to endure them regardless.

Note: Some questions are illegal for potential employers to ask during interviews, so you don’t need to prepare answers to queries like “do you enjoy drinking?” or “how old are you?” It is, however, perfectly legal for Urban Outfitters to hire you based on what you would call your hypothetical debut music album.